Apr 24 Lose The Header

Resume writing can be an art form. But for those who are not an artist, there are some simple ways you can start to put your resume together.

First things first, stay away from using the standard header in Microsoft Word. Applicant Tracking Systems (I’ll talk about this later this week) may not pick up your contact information. Instead remove the header and free type the information. Now that we have that covered; what should you include in your header? So glad you asked. Keep reading for more resume hacks:

1. Name – Last name first, first name last, or vice versa; either is fine. Just make sure the font is slightly bigger than that of the rest of the resume. And don’t forget to include your credentials, (MBA, MFA, CPA etc.) You paid all that money; you deserve a few letters after your name.

2. Address – You do not need to put your physical address. These days city and state are enough. Also, chances are that you will have to fill out an application and put your entire address on there later anyhow, so save yourself the room.

3. Phone – This should be obvious, but just in case, do not put your work phone number (or house number) on your resume. Use your cell phone number. And if you don’t have a cell phone number, well… that’s another conversation all together.

4. Email – I talked about email addresses on Monday (go back and see) but make sure you have a professional email and stay away from using your “cool” email. And never use your work email, unless you want your boss to know you’re looking for other options.

5. LinkedIn – Include your LinkedIn profile address on your resume. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, GET ONE! And if you currently have the standard LinkedIn profile address that was assigned to you, change it to personalize it. This will look more professional and shorten the lengthy one given to you.

If your resume is more than one page long, then now is time to use the Microsoft Word hearer. You do not need to include all the above information though. Name, email and phone number are just fine.

Lastly, while you are taking the time to update your resume, please make sure you are taking the time to update your LinkedIn profile. It’s okay not to have all your work experience on your resume, but you want to make sure that what is on your resume is also included on your LinkedIn profile.